Quick opening and closing line clamp

ABSTRACT

A line clamp which quickly and readily grips and releases a lien, cable, rope and the like including a base arranged to be secured to a dock, boat or other object, a lever pivotally mounted on the base adjacent one end, a pair of coacting jaws shaped to permit the line, cable or rope to be drawn between them when released and to securely grip the line, cable or rope between them when in gripping position, one jaw extending from the base toward the lever, the other jaw being pivotally secured to the lever and extending toward the base and the other jaw, and a spring latch releasably and resiliently latching the lever to the base at the other end. Guide means are provided for guiding the line, rope or cable between the jaws. These may take the form of openings in the pivot means pivotally securing the lever to the one end and the spring latch at the other linearly aligned with the jaws to permit the line, cable or rope to extend through these openings and between the jaws. With the spring latch released and the lever extended, a line, cable or rope can be drawn through the line clamp and between the jaws and clamped where desired, by simply pressing the lever toward the base and latching the spring latch. To release the line, cable or rope, the lever is pressed toward the base, the spring latch released and the lever extended. The line, cable or rope may be withdrawn from the line clamp.

United States Patent Peters, Jr.

[ 1 Jan. 18,1972

[54] QUICK OPENING AND CLOSING LINE CLAMP [72] Inventor: Lovick A. Peters, Jr., Box 150, Sargent Star Road, Bay City, Tex. 77414 [22] Filed: Oct. 15, 1970 [21] Appl. No..' 81,070

[52] US. Cl. ..24/132 WL, 24/134 [51] Int. Cl. ..Fl6g 11/00 [58] Field of Search. ..24/l32 FE, 132 HA, 132 WZ,

24/132 R, 249 LL, 134 M, 134 R; 140/121 Primary Examiner-Bernard A. Gelak Attorney-James F. Weiler, Jefferson D. Giller, William A. Stout, Paul L. DeVerter, 11, Dudley R. Dobie, Jr. and Henry W. Hope 57 ABSTRACT A line clamp which quickly and readily grips and releases a lien, cable, rope and the like including a base arranged to be secured to a dock, boat or other object, a lever pivotally mounted on the base adjacent one end, a pair of coacting jaws shaped to permit the line, cable or rope to be drawn between them when released and to securely grip the line, cable or rope between them when in gripping position, one jaw extending from the base toward the lever, the other jaw being pivotally secured to the lever and extending toward the base and the other jaw, and a spring latch releasably and resiliently latching the lever to the base at the other end. Guide means are provided for guiding the line, rope or cable between the jaws. These may take the form of openings in the pivot means pivotally securing the lever to the one end and the spring latch at the other linearly aligned with the jaws to permit the line, cable or rope to extend through these openings and between the jaws. With the spring latch released and the lever extended, a line, cable or rope can be drawn through the line clamp and between the jaws and clamped where desired, by simply pressing the lever toward the base and latching the spring latch. To release the line, cable or rope, the lever is pressed toward the base, the spring latch released and the lever extended. The line, cable or rope may be withdrawn from the line clamp.

3 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION At the present time lines, ropes, cables and the like are generally wrapped around an abutment or other anchor member and fastened to it in some manner, such as when mooring boats to a dock. This is generally done by hand, is time consuming and sometimes the line or rope comes loose due to the fact that it was not secured properly.

There have been attempts to provide securing devices to secure lines, ropes and cables. These include various clamping devices including levers to close jaws to grip the line, openings for the line or cord and clamp elements resiliently held in clamping position, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 297,536; 940,512; 1,546,306; 2,330,736 and 3,084,409. These devices apparently have not been satisfactory since, and particularly with respect to mooring of boats to docks, they have not been used to any extent insofar as applicant is aware.

Accordingly, there is a need for a simple, effective line, rope or cable clamping device which is relatively inexpensive, easy to secure to a dock, boat or other object, and in which the line, rope or cable may be pulled through the device readily, easily, effectively and quickly clamped and released, when desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an improved quick opening and closing line clamp for readily and quickly gripping or releasing lines, ropes, cables and the like, for use particularly in docking boats and other craft as well as for other purposes.

This invention seeks to overcome the disadvantages of securing lines, ropes and cables by hand to an abutment or anchor member with all the human element and error present, as well as the time consumed in securing and releasing the lines and to provide a securing or clamping device which is relatively inexpensive and simple, in which the line may be readily pulled through the device, guided between the clamping jaws and quickly clamped and quickly released, where desired, yet providing a secure clamping of the line.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an improved quick opening and closing clamping or securing device by which lines, ropes and cables may be readily pulled through the device and quickly and resiliently clamped and secured, where desired.

Yet a further object of the present invention is the provision of such a clamping or securing device in which the line may be quickly and readily released and pulled loose and free of the clamping device.

Yet a further object of the present invention is the provision of such a line, rope or cable clamping device which is particularly adapted and suited for use in securing boats, other craft and vehicles to docks, anchors and the like.

Still a further object of the present invention is the provision of a line clamp which quickly and readily grips and releases a line, cable, rope and the like which is provided with a base arranged to be secured to a dock, boat or other object, a lever pivotally mounted at one end of the base, a pair of coacting jaws shaped to securely grip the line, cable or rope between them, one jaw extending from the base toward the lever, the other pivotally secured to the lever and extending toward the base and other jaw, a spring latch releasably and resiliently latching the lever to the base at the other end, and guide means guiding the line, rope or cable in between the jaws.

Yet a further object of the present invention is the provision of such a line clamp in which the means to pivot the lever and the spring latch are provided with openings generally aligned on opposite sides of the coacting shaped jaws so that the line, rope or cable is guided through these openings and between the jaws, when released, readily and easily, gripped by actuating the lever and securing the spring latch, and released by pressing the lever inwardly and releasing the spring latch.

Other and further objects, features and advantages will be present from the following description of presently preferred embodiments of the invention, given for the purpose ofdisclosure and taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING Like character references designate like parts throughout the several views of the drawing, which views are as follows:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the line clamp shown clamping a line, rope or cable,

FIG. 2 is a top view of the line clamp of FIG. I with the line, rope or cable removed for ease of illustration,

FIG. 3 is an end view of the right side of the line clamp of FIG. 2 and FIG. 4 is an end view of the left side of the line clamp illustrated in FIG. 2.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Turning now to the drawing, and particularly FIGS. I and 2, the line clamp is generally indicated by the reference numeral 10 and is shown secured to the deck 12 by means of the bolts 14 extending through openings in the generally rectangularly shaped baseplate 16. The baseplate 16 may be secured to a deck, dock, anchor member or other structure as desired.

Adjacent the left-hand of the baseplate are a pair of spaced upright members 18 extending from the baseplate l2 and which are provided with openings through with the screws or bolts 20 are threaded and which have the ends 22 rotatably projecting into the downwardly extending spaced sides 24 of an elongated lever 26 which extends generally to the right end of the baseplate 16. Thus, the lever 16 may be pivoted or extended away from the baseplate l6 and moved toward it to secure and release the cable, rope or line 28, as more fully described later.

As best seen in FIG. 3, the platelike members 18 extending from the baseplate 16 have provided between them guide means in the form of a plate 28 which also provides a support or reinforcement for the members 18. Similarly, the inwardly extending legs 24 of lever 26 have provided between them guide means in the form of a plate 30, which similarly serves as a support or reinforcement for the legs 24. The plates 28 and 30 have the recessed coacting portions 32 and 34 to provide a guide opening 35 through which the line, cable or rope 28 may loosely extend. Thus, a generally circular opening 35 is provided for loose reception of the line, cable or rope 28.

The lever member 26, which extends generally the length of the baseplate 16 as previously mentioned, is provided with a pair of spaced inwardly extending lugs 32 having the inwardly extending pivot pins 34 to which is pivotally secured the leaf spring latch 36, which is provided with a generally circular opening 38 thus providing a pair of legs 40 having the inwardly turned latch members 42 which latch under the latching abutment 44 secured to and adjacent the right end of the baseplate 16. The latching abutment 44 has a generally recessed portion 46 which cooperates which the recessed portion 38 of the spring latch 36 to provide a generally circular opening 39 which is linearly aligned with the circular opening 35 formed by the recessed surfaces 32 and 34 of the guide members 28 and 30 at the right end for loose reception and guiding of the line, cable or rope 28 between the jaws 48 and 54, as best seen in FIG. 1.

Extending upwardly from the baseplate l6 and between the two sideplates 18 is the fixed jaw of 48, as best seen in FIG. 1, and pivotally secured by the pivots S0 to the inwardly extending lugs 52 from the lever 30 is the coacting jaw 54. The jaws 48 and 52 when in the position illustrated in FIG. 1, compress and thereby frictionally clamp the line, cable or rope between them.

In use, the spring latch 36 is disengaged from the latching abutment 44 and the lever 30 is extended, thus moving the upper gripping jaw 54 away from the lower gripping jaw 48 and thereby releasing any line, rope or cable 28 in between them, or thereby placing the line clamp in position to receive such a line, cable or rope, which may then be drawn through the device to the desired position, the lever 30 pressed toward the base 16, the spring latch 36 latched in position by placing the inwardly extending latching members 42 under the latching abutment 44 thereby causing the grippingjaws 48 and 54 to firmly and securely grip the line, cable or rope 28.

When it is desired to release the line, cable or rope 28, the lever 30 is moved toward the baseplate 16 thereby permitting the spring latch 36 to be disengaged from the latching abutment 44, the lever 30 then may be moved away from the baseplate 16 thereby separating the gripping jaws 48 and 54 thus releasing the line, cable or rope 28 and permitting it to be pulled through the device.

Advantageously, the line, rope or cable 28 is guided in between the jaws 48 and 54 by the guide members 28 and 30 forming the guide opening 35 on one side of the jaws 48 and 54, and by the guide opening 39 in the spring latch 40 and closed by the latching abutment 44 on the other side of the jaws 48 and 54. The guide openings 35 and 39 are in linear alignment through the jaws 48 and 54 thereby insuring that a line, rope or cable 28 pulled through these guide openings will pass between the jaws 48 and 54 thereby assuring a firm gripping of the line, rope or cable 28 and minimizing human errors when pulling the line, rope or cable 28 by hand through the line clamp 10.

Thus, the line clamp provides a ready and quick securing means for securing lines, ropes and cables, such as used when mooring boats, vehicles and other craft yet provides a positive and effective clamp or grip of the line, rope or cable and virtually eliminates the human error elementv While reference has been made to lines, ropes and cables 28, it will be understood that the term line in the claims includes all lines, ropes, cords, cables and the like, all of which may be gripped or anchored by the line clamp.

The present invention, therefore, is well adapted to carry out the objects and attain the ends and advantages mentioned, as well as others inherent therein. While a presently preferred embodiment of the invention has been given for the purpose of disclosure, changes in details of construction and the combination, shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is:

l. A quick opening and closing line clamp comprising,

an elongated base adapted to be secured to the surface of an object,

a lever pivotally secured at one end to the base,

a pair ofcoactingjaws shaped to permit a line to be clamped between them when in gripping position and to be drawn between them when released,

onejaw being fixed to and extending from the base,

the other jaw being pivotally carried by the lever and extending toward the other jaw when the jaws are in gripping position,

a spring latch pivotally secured adjacent the other end of the lever,

a latching abutment fixed to the base and arranged to be latchingly engaged by the spring latch whereby the line is securely gripped by the jaws when the lever is latched to the base and the line is released from the jaws when the lever is not latched to the base, and

guide means provided with an opening loosely receiving the line arranged to guide the line in between the pair of coactingjaws.

2. The quick opening and closing line clamp of claim 1 where the guide means comprise,

a pair of guide members, one guide member secured to and extending outwardly from the plate at the one end and the other guide member secured to and extending inwardly from the lever toward the one guide member, said guide members providing the opening loosely receiving the line,

and the spring latch being provided with an opening for loosely receiving the line,

the openings in the pair of guide members and the spring latch being in linear arrangement with the jaws whereby a line pulled through the openings is guide between the aws.

3. The quick opening and closing line clamp of claim 2 including,

a first pair ofspaced members extending outwardly from the base at the one end,

a second pair of spaced members extending inwardly from the lever toward the first pair of spaced members,

means pivotally securing the first and second pairs of members together by which the lever is pivotally secured at the one end to the base,

one of the pair of guide members being secured to the base and the first pair of spaced members, and the other of the guide members be secured to the lever and the second pair of spaced members,

the spring latch being provided with a pair of inwardly ex tending legs having latching members at their inner ends, and

the locking abutment having a recessed portion cooperating with the legs to provide the opening in the latch. 

1. A quick opening and closing line clamp comprising, an elongated base adapted to be secured to the surface of an object, a lever pivotally secured at one end to the base, a pair of coacting jaws shaped to permit a line to be clamped between them when in gripping position and to be drawn between them when released, one jaw being fixed to and extending from the base, the other jaw being pivotally carried by the lever and extending toward the other jaw when the jaws are in gripping position, a spring latch pivotally secured adjacent the other end of the lever, a latching abutment fixed to the base and arranged to be latchingly engaged by the spring latch whereby the line is securely gripped by the jaws when the lever is latched to the base and the line is released from the jaws when the lever is not latched to the base, and guide means provided with an opening loosely receiving the line arranged to guide the line in between the pair of coacting jaws.
 2. The quick opening and closing line clamp of claim 1 where the guide means comprise, a pair of guide members, one guide member secured to and extending outwardly from the plate at the one end and the other guide member secured to and extending inwardly from the lever toward the one guide member, said guide members providing the opening loosely receiving the line, and the spring latch being provided with an opening for loosely receiving the line, the openings in the pair of guide members and the spring latch being in linear arrangement with the jaws whereby a line pulled through the openings is guide between the jaws.
 3. The quick opening and closing line clamp of claim 2 including, a first pair of spaced members extending outwardly from the base at the one end, a second pair of spaced members extending inwardly from the lever toward the first pair of spaced members, means pivotally securing the first and second pairs of members together by which the lever is pivotally secured at the one end to the base, one of the pair of guide members being secured to the base and the first pair of spaced members, and the other of the guide members be secured to the lever and the second pair of spaced members, the spring latch being provided with a pair of inwardly extending legs having latching members at their inner ends, and the locking abutment having a recessed portion cooperating with the legs to provide the opening in the latch. 